


Yo, Slacker

by VamolaTamer



Category: Ride (TV 2016)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:00:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24508810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VamolaTamer/pseuds/VamolaTamer
Summary: Josh expected the look of irritation when she spun to face him, but the watery glimmer in her eyes took him off guard.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 1





	Yo, Slacker

**Author's Note:**

> This is set near the end of episode 11, “Stalled.”

“Whoa!” Josh narrowly missed getting clipped by Elaine as she barreled through the corridor. “Popped out of nowhere,” he quipped; a reference to the laminated pop quiz they had earlier grappled over. It had ultimately ended in Elaine ceding when it became clear there would be no salvaging the crumpled document that was meant for Will. Now Josh expected the look of irritation when she spun to face him, but the watery glimmer in her eyes took him off guard.

She held his gaze for only a second before she resumed her march down the corridor.

Another couple seconds passed as Josh stood frozen in shock and uncertain what to do next in the wake of this rare turn of emotion from Elaine. The voices of his sisters swept through his mind and moved him to follow after her.

“Hey, hey, what’s happened?” He lightly took her by the elbow and steered her to the hall behind the tuck shop.

Elaine shrugged him off but neither responded nor walked away, instead remaining defiantly silent and avoiding any eye contact. Her whole expression was tense, as were the hands clutching the books close to her chest.

 _Books…_ “Did something happen with Will?”

The reaction was immediate, gaze flicking up, cheeks flushed, and the line of her mouth thinning.

 _Ah… so that’s it…_ Suddenly it made sense. The way that Elaine’s haughty attitude deflated when Will claimed he had chosen the Gherkin for their architectural project came to mind. Josh never imagined he’d ever see Elaine distressed, let alone heartbroken. He was sure that’s what this was, but was uncertain what to do next. He knew he had to do _something_ , especially after making it his business to check on her. The only thing was, he didn’t know how Elaine would respond to sympathies from him and didn’t want to make her more uncomfortable than she already was. Drawing attention to her feelings toward Will would be along that vein. So Josh decided on what he did best – played around with the situation.

“Will’s that bad of a student, huh?” He waited a beat as Elaine’s expression relaxed with a hint of confusion. “Maybe your methods just aren’t for him.” Trying to comfort Elaine was so weird, and he got the sense that he was now possibly rambling off a cobbled metaphor while she stared at him. “Doesn’t mean they don’t work for others though.” His hands were moving a lot too. “Look at Kit. I bet you’ll have her riding like a pro in no time.”

Elaine drew herself up and replied, “There’s no need to be ridiculous. I’d settle for her completing the course at this point.”

It was actually a relief to hear her speak with her usual curt tone. “You? Settle?” Josh grinned. “Did pigs somehow manage to fly?”

“Ha-ha. I’m leaving now.”

He raised an arm in farewell as she left, still glowing with what felt like success. “Take it easy, slacker!”

**Author's Note:**

> The scene when Elaine and Josh fought over the pop quiz stuck out to me as a surprise, considering how it seemed to me that Josh was usually wary of Elaine. The unexpected dynamic interested me, so voilà.


End file.
